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The Tribune

Volume:115 No.165, JULY 20TH, 2018

Established 1903

Weekend

Super Value ends staff ‘sex’ benefit Pregnancies soar to cash in on maternity deal SUPER VALUE President Rupert Roberts said yesterday the company will discontinue covering enhanced maternity expenses of its employees because an increase in staff pregnancies is affecting the company’s medical fund at a time when there has also been a significant increase in catastrophic care expenses.

In a memo to staff, the company said it will no longer cover maternity costs, “ie prenatal, delivery,

postnatal or any other expenses pertaining to maternity”.

“We must keep our expenses within budget so that we will have funds available for emergencies and catastrophic illnesses,” the memo continued.

The memo confused some Facebook users who mistakenly thought the company has chosen to ignore the provisions of the Employment Act that prescribe the obligations of employers with respect to employees on maternity leave.

SEE PAGE THREE

THE mother of a 25-yearold man who was killed in a boating accident involving the Royal Bahamas Defence Force two years ago is suing the government for $35,000 in damages for the agency’s alleged negligence that resulted in her son’s death.

A writ filed in the Supreme Court by their

JERMIA’S BROADWAY DREAM Pages 4 & 5

Flipping out

A safe haven for dolphins

pages 8 & 9

ATLANTA VISIT ENDS IN RACIAL BARRAGE

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

A GROUP of Bahamian youth in Atlanta and former Cabinet minister Zhivargo Laing were verbally attacked at an Atlanta hotel Wednesday night by a white man who called them “n******”, “sluts” and told them “go back to Africa,” Mr Laing said on his Guardian Radio talk show yesterday.

Before he was arrested by police, the man was punched in the face by another white man who came to their defence, Mr Laing told listeners.

“What the fella did amounted to a violation of our human rights, our civil rights,” Mr Laing, former state minister of finance, said.

SEE PAGE THREE

PALACIOUS: SIR ROLAND HONOUR IS MISTAKE

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Deputy Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net

MOTHER SUES RBDF OVER SON’S DEATH

By NICO SCAVELLA Tribune Staff Reporter nscavella@tribunemedia.net

Friday, July 20, 2018

Weekend

WEEKEND: DIVING BEHIND THE SCENES AT DOLPHIN CAY

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

THE garden PEOPLE’S PAPER: $1 ing fashion puzzle s astronomy food

art books entertainment

THE process for bestowing National Honours, which leaves the final say up to the prime minister, should be revisited, Anglican Archdeacon James Palacious said yesterday.

At the same time he said he agreed with many that Sir Roland Symonette’s posthumous award of National Hero did not fall in line with the National Honours Act 2016.

Speaking to reporters yesterday, the acting Christian Council president further knocked the decision to award the late Sir Cecil Wallace Whitfield the same award. He said if anyone should have been

attorney, Nicholas Mitchell, shows how Dale Turnquest is seeking $35,800 in special damages from the government as a result of the October 1, 2016, accident off Potter’s Cay Dock that claimed the life of Christopher Turnquest.

Of that sum, $17,000 is sought to cover Mr Turnquest’s funeral and burial expenses; another $10,000 to cover the legal fees of the SEE PAGE FIVE

SEE PAGE SIX SWEET Emily poses for a photo with a statue of Ronnie Butler in the Legends Garden at the University of The Bahamas. See page two for more photographs from the unveiling last night.

Photo: Terrel W Carey/Tribune Staff

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By RICARDO WELLS Tribune Staff Reporter rwells@tribunemedia.net

THE Education Loan Authority is considering an “extensive analysis” of all remaining delinquent student loans to determine “how much is still owed”, according to chairwoman Miriam Emmanuel.

Addressing the current status of the authority’s

MIRIAM EMMANUEL recovery efforts yesterday, the MICAL MP insisted that while scores of

borrowers have voluntarily “stepped up and done right by the ELA”, there remains a considerable percentage of loan-holders who continue to avoid their payment agreements.

Mrs Emmanuel said the authority has, over the last year, pushed its current recovery scheme to its limits; noting the “write and SEE PAGE SEVEN

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PAGE 2, Friday, July 20, 2018

THE TRIBUNE

ALL HAIL THE LEGENDS

FROM left, the statues unveiled last night in the Legends Garden at the University of The Bahamas of “King” Eric Gibson, Ronnie Butler and John Berkeley “Peanuts” Taylor. The occasion was marked by a ceremony that included music, dance and speeches by dignitaries.

Photos: Terrel W Carey/Tribune Staff

MICHAEL MAGHIRO, owner of Ikemba, responsible for the sculptures, with Craig Flowers and Dr Rodney D Smith.

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FORMER Minister Shane Gibson, left, the son of “King” Eric Gibson, at the ceremony and, above right, former Prime Minister Perry Christie at the event last night.

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THE TRIBUNE

Friday, July 20, 2018, PAGE 3

Super Value ends staff ‘sex’ benefit from page one Speaking of how prevalent pregnancies have become among staff, Mr Roberts told The Tribune: “Pregnancies in young people in the past 24 months have really intensified. I have personnel who give me hiring and firing counts every week. Now I ask him to give me the pregnancies and birth numbers too.

“We were taking it in stride. It’s no problem covering the expenses but (senior staff) is seeing things in healthcare that is scaring them.

We have a big reserve and they want to keep it big.”

Mr Roberts admitted he hopes the policy shift influences the sexual proclivities of his staff.

“It might discourage sex in the back room,” he said. “We find them in coolers and everywhere else, the warehouse; back shots are easy you know, sex is a pretty easy thing.

“I believe (going forward) girls for things like cancer and heart are not going to think there is a attacks and the like.” particular advantage looking to Mr Roberts said executives did work here because Super Value not survey staff before implepays for pregnanmenting the new cies,” he said. policy.

He said ‘It might “I think among if there is significant discourage sex in pushback, he would the cashiers, they don’t care if they the back room. encourage his team get pregnant or they We find them to reverse the policy. say, ‘let me have my in coolers and “If they say, ‘give babies now if someme the roses while one else is going everywhere else, I live, I’m not going to pay for it’. Even the warehouse; to have cancer, get husbands say, ‘let’s back shots are easy mashed up in an have the babies accident and have now, Super Value you know, sex is a broken legs and is paying.’ We were pretty easy thing.’ be crippled all my paying it every time. life, I want my baby They loved it, the money now,’ I’ll say ones that were indulging in it. ‘okay let’s go for it, but then what “We have 750 beautiful women. are you going to do if you exhaust Fellas came in and targeted them, the fund and you have a lifegot babies and don’t have to pay. threatening disease?’ I’m really We’re not going to put money surprised that something negative up for that anymore, but instead has come out of this. “Somebody

may be jealous that we pay 100 percent medical expenses for all staff and that’s really unheard of in the world today that we do so.”

Mr Roberts said the food store chain will continue going beyond the requirements of the labour laws. Though it is not enrolled in an insurance plan, the company has one of the most progressive medical coverage policies in the country, he said. “We don’t have insurance but anybody that gets sick we not only pay for it, my daughter and myself go down to Doctors Hospital with them, we go to PMH with them, we consult doctors, we work with the family.”

He said the company recently paid $70,000 for someone to get heart surgery. It paid $40,000 for someone else to get an operation.

“We have the best medical plans in The Bahamas and we take care of our staff,” he said.

RUPERT ROBERTS

A PHOTO of the Bahamas Youth Leadership Development Programme with talk show host Zhivargo Laing, centre, posted to the Bahamas Consulate Atlanta’s Facebook page on Wednesday.

ATLANTA VISIT ENDS IN RACIAL BARRAGE Graphic Designer Want Ad_Layout 1 7/19/18 2:42 PM Page 1

from page one The group travelled to Atlanta through the Bahamas Youth Leadership Development Programme.

They were at a hotel when the incident took place.

“I was here and was able to bear witness to a racial attack, a verbal attack on ourselves and young people that was simply horrific,” Mr Laing said.

“To have a grown man just nakedly hurling racial insults, calling our young women sluts; that they were assembling in the rooms to get the food that we were serving to them, to his mind they could be doing nothing but the outrageous so to him they were sluts and we were niggers and we needed to go back to Africa and (US President) Donald Trump was trying to do that, get us out of there and back to Africa – those were the words he hurled at us.”

He continued: “A white man saw this gentleman hurling these racial slurs at these young kids and

walked up to him and asked him, ‘Why are you doing that to these young people?

I have daughters. Why are you calling them these names?’

“And this guy then proceeds to say to him, ‘You are nothing but white trash to be taking up for these people’… I have to tell you that gentlemen said, ‘I’m afraid you messed with the wrong white trash today’ and proceeded to drop kick this gentleman.

“Not very long after, maybe about 12 police officers with their vehicle came and they came under the impression that this guy hurling the slurs was being attacked by a mob of black people.

“We explained to the police officers what had happened. They asked him, ‘Were you hurling racial slurs at these people?’ He admitted to doing so.

“I watched as these police officers’ demeanor changed. You could see them get deflated by what was for them now a different scenario.

“As an adult,” Mr Laing said, “I could take your hurling stuff at me.

But children? Children?

How additionally more offensive.”

Mr Laing said his team encouraged the young people to share their feelings about the incident.

“There was anger, there was disappointment, there was shock for some of them that this could actually happen,” he said.

“But so many of them said what immediately came to their mind was we had just come from the international human and civil rights centre, saw this thing on television, saw this thing on recording and pictures and here we were living this.”

The National Centre for Civil and Human Rights is a museum in Georgia dedicated to the achievements of the civil rights movement in the United States and the broader worldwide human rights movement.

Among other things, the youth leadership

group visited the gravesite of the late Martin Luther King at the National Historical Park in Atlanta yesterday.

One girl on Mr Laing’s show said she was upset and felt horrible by what happened the day before, having never been called such names.

A boy said he felt discriminated against. They said they were enraged.

One boy said he was encouraged two other white men came to their rescue and defended him.

Mr Laing said he didn’t feel the incident was something that should be used to cast aspersions on the US as a whole, though he noted that in recent times many observers have noticed more overt racial friction in the country. He said the incident was reported to the Bahamas Consulate General’s office in Atlanta.

In recent months, incidents of racially motivated altercations have been publicised in American media, with many of the events being filmed on cell phones.

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THE TRIBUNE

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Why we need to pay our bills ARE we really serious about ensuring the brightest possible future for The Bahamas?

The question is prompted by the continuing saga of unpaid student loans. It’s far from a new problem, with the task of going around, cap in hand, to borrowers now falling to Miriam Emmanuel.

It seems a thankless task. The Education Loan Authority has sent out letters, made phone calls, all inviting borrowers to “do the right thing” and pay back what they owe. It’s a simple request, really – just asking people to do the right thing. Is that so difficult?

There’s even an incentive programme, set up in February 2016, to encourage repayments. It’s all encouragement – saying please, offering incentives. It seems there are an awful lot of carrots being offered and not enough sticks.

What are the consequences of not paying? And why does it seem that not paying is a widespread problem in The Bahamas?

When you borrowed the money in the first place, it was on the condition you paid it back – it wasn’t a gift.

Just this week, as well as student loans, we have heard complaints from straw vendors saying the government is being heavy handed with its demands that vendors pay up what they owed.

Water and Sewerage Corporation chairman Adrian Gibson, meanwhile, said his corporation is now taking a nononsense approach to recovering debts.

“If you owe the corporation, expect that you will pay. If you don’t pay, you are disconnected, simple as that.”

Simple sounding, indeed – but why was it ever any different? How did we get to this something-for-nothing culture? And what are the real costs to the country?

As the FNM sucked in its collective breath before telling the country VAT was going to have to go up, one of the other options for increasing the money in its coffers was Real Property Tax collection. Sure, the Budget had some measures on property tax, with increases on foreign-owned vacant land, for example, but it was the speech by Deputy Prime Minister Peter Turnquest that was most telling, as he told Parliament: “The Real Property Tax system has long been acknowledged to be antiquated and inadequate to its mandate and mission.”

He freely admitted a properly functioning system could bring significantly more revenue, and that underpayment and avoidance of paying property taxes was a huge problem.

We’re not talking small sums here – we’re talking tens of millions. The Budget measures Turnquest did introduce he expects to bring an extra $80m.

But again, why is non-payment of what is owed tolerated? Why do people feel they don’t have to pay their bills?

It’s one thing if someone is struggling to pay – and here we feel sympathy for those whose belts are already tight.

Those straw vendors struggling to pay their bills, for example, should be offered every opportunity to agree a satisfactory payment plan. But at the end of the day, pay they must.

Every time the country leaves money on the table, it means the pockets of the Treasury are that much lighter. And so we end up with the increase in VAT, where we all find our pockets lighter in return.

The case of student loans is particularly difficult, however, in that students who have just finished school and those following behind them are being denied an opportunity because those who went before them have failed to honour the deal.

It’s a simple enough deal – the government gave them money to help them in their studies, and they pay it back afterwards – but that deal has often been broken.

The student loan programme was established in 2000 – but suspended nine years later due to the high rate of delinquency as people failed to pay back what they owed.

With a trickle of money coming back in, there was a shortage of funds to offer to the next wave of students.

The incentive scheme had, by June, seen 498 borrowers pay off their loans, and they are to be applauded, but many more bills went unpaid – so much so that Miriam Emmanuel said she couldn’t say how much was still owed.

The hardly spoken solution is, of course, taking people to court to pay up – but that has been a politically unpalatable suggestion for more than one government. Back under the Christie administration, stern letters were also sent out, but without a threat of action, many too went ignored.

Mrs Emmanuel acknowledges the possibility of a legal solution – but wants one that “works for both sides”.

It’s easy to imagine that concerted legal action against thousands of loan recipients would be a recipe for disaster at the polls for whichever party initiated such action – who would vote for the party that took you to court for the bill that the other party ignored?

But at some point, don’t we have to take responsibility for the bills we have run up? Look around the world and see what happens elsewhere. Students borrow money and when they start work an attachment on their earnings immediately comes into effect on the payroll to recover the loans. Why can’t that happen here? It’s just nonsense that we allow this to happen.

Perhaps we can take some inspiration from a former president across the water – John F Kennedy in his 1961 inaugural address said: “Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country.”

More to the point, let us ask what we can do for our country’s children. And the first thing we can do is to pay our bills.

A tribute to Alfred Bullard EDITOR, The Tribune.

developed personal relationships with the detectives IN the sixties and early and we became loyal to him. seventies our Criminal InvesAlfred Bullard was one tigation Department was led of the young members by the late Stanley Moir, who of Moir’s team. He was joined the Police Service always physically fit and here from Bermuda. He was could endure the long hours able to get approval for an required at times to comincrease in personnel to join plete investigations. His stalwarts, such as Ormond immense local knowledge Briggs, Anthony Fields, of the New Providence enviMilan Gittens, Louis Hem- ronment, places and people mings, Courtney Strachan were very useful to the team and Allardyce Strachan. when searching for suspects A number of younger who may have gone into constables joined us. I hiding, persons we needed recall Garth Johnson, to be interviewed, and Douglas Hanna, Arthur places we needed to execute Yearwood, Basil Dean and search warrants.

Alfred Bullard, recently The “Bull” as he was deceased. Moir, through nicknamed by his colhis exceptional leadership, leagues had a wealth of management skills was reliable informants in all able to improve the stand- areas of New Providence, ard of performance of the which was one of his greatCID from “satisfactory” to est assets. During that era efficient and effective. He of the CID, there was no

Fraud Squad, Drug Squad or Special Branch. We were trained to fulfil all those tasks, which also included protection of the Prime Minister. Sir Lynden Pindling’s first security aide came from among us.

All of those young detectives mentioned eventually became senior officers, with Basil Dean and Douglas Hanna becoming Assistant Commissioners.

Bullard after his retirement became Director of Security at LIPA and rendered full cooperation with the Police Service all of us, who were members of that group known as “Stan Moir’s Team” will remember and mourn the loss of a great detective.

PAUL THOMPSON Sr Nassau, July 12, 2018.

Why the row over Sir Roland?

EDITOR, The Tribune.

I AM old enough, despite my youthful looks, to remember the late Sir Roland T Symonette and, of course, the late Sir Stafford L Sands. They were both integral members of what was then loosely known as the United Bahamian Party (UBP) which held political sway over our country during the 1950s and 1960s. Most adherents of the UBP were so-called “white” Bahamians but there were hundreds of “black” Bahamians who also sang from the same hymn sheet.

In fact, believe it or not, I too was a strong supporter of that political entity as a teenager and a student at The Government High School (GHS), where the University of The Bahamas is now located. The embryonic Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) back in the day had to dramatise and over blow almost everything, inclusive of the “race card” if it was to excite the imagination of the average “black” Bahamian and galvanise their support.

One must also keep in mind that around this same era, the so-called civil rights movement in the USA was in full bloom. Adam Clayton Powell, a then powerful coloured Democrat from New York; the young Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King from Atlanta, Georgia; H ‘Rap’ Brown of California and one of the more vocal leaders of the Black Panthers, Stokely Carmichael, a radical author and activist; Malcolm X and Elijah Mohammed of The Black Muslims were all over the USA and often times many of them popped over to The Bahamas on breaks and vacations. They would have, of course, interacted with the leaders of the PLP.

LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net I am amazed at the furor that is being/has been generated over the selection, well deserved in my view, of Sir Roland T Symonette, a long dead Bahamian first Premier, as a National Hero. He did more for so many average Bahamian, white or black, than any other single Bahamian, white or black.

Sir Roland was a product of his day and culture, but he, to my personal knowledge, never harboured a racist bone in his body. He mixed with all Bahamians and always displayed humility; meekness and gross generosity.

He and others within the UBP, Godfrey Kelly readily comes to mind as then Minister of Education and MP for Cat Island, opened up secondary education to the average Bahamian, white and black. Sir Roland was also instrumental in developing numerous real estate subdivisions throughout New Providence; Ridgeland Park East & West; portions of Englerston; Pinedale; Claridge Dale; Pyfrom’s Addition; Garden Hills Estates 1 & 2 and the list goes on and on.

As a result of his efforts, thousands of Bahamians were able to purchase, on credit, residential building lots from his assorted corporate structures. The Tin Shop on Wulff Road, was Sir Roland’s warehouse.

Super Value is now on that site. Bahamians were able to purchase, often on credit, all of their building supplies from The Tin Shop. If you are able to tell me, tell me of one other Bahamian, black or white, who would have assisted in propelling thousands of fellow Bahamians into the now fabled ‘middle class’.

It is what it is and I for one will never allow

misguided individuals, who should know better, besmirch the good name and, yes, integrity of Sir Roland. Sir Stafford may have “worn” his racial views on his sleeves, but I also knew him up close.

He was a giant of a man, both physically and intellectually. He did not suffer fools gladly. Almost everyday, when I would not have been at GHS, I would accompany my late father, the Reverend Dr Ortland H Bodie Sr, into the Bay Street area.

I would often see Sir Stafford striding down that corridor and he often stopped and spoke to my dad and me in a friendly and jovial manner. So, for the remnants of black racists who still live in the distant past, I say get a life and let us deal with the real issues which plague our wonderful nation: teenage pregnancies; pervasive drug usage and abuse; inability of the average Bahamian to access an affordable piece of property; no fiscal responsibility; no freedom of information act; visionless politicians, across the board; a nasty environment; alleged corruption in low and high places and, of course, the societal and cultural melt down in our nation.

Sir Roland T Symonette deserves this honour and more. He was, like it or not, one of the more prominent guiders of the modern Bahamas. In fact, whenever we get around to setting up a National Heroes Park at Fort Charlotte, life-sized bronze statutes MUST be erected, inter alia, of Sir Lynden; Sir Roland; Sir Cecil; Sir Milo Butler and Sir Stafford. Let us move beyond this non issue of race. Race baiting in today’s Bahamas? To God then, in all of these silly things, be the glory.

ORTLAND H. BODIE, JR. Nassau, July 19, 2018

THE TRIBUNE

Friday, July 20, 2018, PAGE 5

PRIME Minister Dr Hubert Minnis and his delegation returned home yesterday from the United Nations Political Forum on Sustainable Development in New York City, where he made an official presentation on July 18. The Prime Minister is pictured centre, upon arrival at LPIA. Chatting with him is Minister of Foreign Affairs Darren Henfield.

Photo: Yontalay Bowe/BIS

Mother sues RBDF over son’s death from page one Coroner’s inquest into his death — which found that the crash was accidental; and another $8,800 to cover loss of dependency.

Mrs Turnquest is also seeking damages on behalf of her son’s estate; damages on behalf of her son and/or persons entitled under the Fatal Accidents Act and/or the Survival of Action Act; general damages for loss of expectation of life; damages for loss of future earnings (lost years); damages for bereavement; interest; costs and such further and/or other relief that the Court deems just and necessary.

Mrs Turnquest is to make the claim in her capacity as administratrix of her son’s estate. The claim is also brought on behalf of Mr Turnquest’s three younger sisters.

The Office of the Attorney General is listed as the sole defendant in the matter, and is joined pursuant to section 12 of the Crown Proceedings Act for the actions of RBDF Able Seaman Claude Lesbott and/or Marine Seaman Kendrick Edgecombe, for which the Crown is “vicariously liable”.

According to the writ, on or about October 1, 2016, Mr Turnquest was a passenger of a 13-foot vessel travelling in waters opposite the Bay Street marina, when a RBDF vessel RB-D1, driven and/or operated by Able Seaman Lesbott and/or Marine Seaman Edgecombe, navigated into the path of and ultimately collided with the vessel Mr Turnquest was on.

Mr Turnquest suffered blunt force trauma to the head, neck and torso as a result of the accident. He also sustained a laceration to his frontal scalp; a depressed frontal bone and calvarium fracture; an Atlanto (first cervical certebra) — occipital dislocation with fracture; and a fractured fourth thoracic vertebra.

As a result of the accident and the consequent injuries, Mr Turnquest died about two days later on October 3.

In May, a jury ruled that Mr Turnquest’s death was “accidental” and not the result of negligence by the RBDF officers.

However, the writ asserts that the RBDF officers were negligent in that they

failed to keep any or proper look-out; failed to see the vessel in which the deceased was onboard in time or at all; failed adequately or at all to heed or act upon the presence, path, position and approach the vessel in which the deceased was travelling; emerged when it was unsafe to do so by reason of the presence, path, position and approach of the vessel in which the deceased was travelling; and drove into the path of and collided with the vessel in which the deceased was onboard.

The writ further asserts that the RBDF officers failed to take any, or any adequate care and attention to where they were going; failed to take any or any adequate care for the safety of the deceased; failed to stop, slow down, brake, swerve or otherwise steer or control the vessel so as to avoid colliding with the vessel in which the deceased was travelling; and exposed the deceased to a “foreseeable risk of injury and/or demise”.

The writ further asserts that in all the circumstances, the RBDF vessel in question was travelling too fast.

In response to the allegations made in the writ, the Crown denied navigating into the path of the vessel Mr Turnquest was on. The Crown further denied that the collision and alleged “negligence” of the two RBDF officers resulted in Mr Turnquest’s death, and put Mrs Turnquest to “strict proof” on that claim.

The Crown further charges that Marine Seaman Edgecombe did act as a look-out on the date in question, conducting watch from portside.

The Crown explained that the accident happened two days before Hurricane Matthew hit New Providence, and that the two RBDF officers were thus unable to see the vessel Mr Turnquest was on “because of heavy rainfall and darkness” that filled the Nassau harbour.

Additionally, the Crown asserts that the vessel Mr Turnquest was on had no navigational or operational lights on at the time.

The Crown claims that as the RBDF vessel turned to exit the channel in the vicinity of the Bay Street Marina on approach to the Harbour Patrol Unit, it collided with an “unknown object”.

It maintained that at the time of the collision, the RBDF vessel was going at a “safe speed” which is “moderate speed for the size of the vessel”, and “not fast”.

Nonetheless, the Crown says upon colliding with the unknown object, the RBDF officers immediately reduced the vessel’s revolutions per minute (RPM) and commenced an investigation.

Upon doing so, the RBDF officers saw a small, capsized vessel and immediately search and found Mr Turnquest and his cousin in the water.

The Crown thus asserts that Mr Turnquest “contributed to the injuries he sustained”. The Crown further asserts that there was no negligence by the RBDF officers, and denied the alleged injury, loss or damage as alleged by Mrs Turnquest and put her to “strict proof” on that point.

The Crown further denied that any pain and injury Mr Turnquest suffered was the result of the negligence of the RBDF officers, and likewise put Mrs Turnquest to strict proof on that claim.

However, Mr Mitchell, in his statement, said Mr Turnquest’s death was “nothing short of a tragedy”, which in turn was “aggravated” by the fact “that it seems those responsible refuse to accept liability”.

Mr Mitchell further charged that the officers’ position that the passage of Hurricane Matthew prior to “this reckless act of negligence” is a “relevant and determinative consideration” is “demonstrative of the lack of seriousness which they place on this matter”.

He further charged that while there have been “many variations”

posited of events that “could have” occurred that led to Mr Turnquest’s death, there is “no escape from the facts”.

“What we have here is an incident involving a young man, in a vessel operating within an area in which no other vessel, much less a vessel operated by the Royal Bahamas Defence Force, ought to have been making the kind of speed that we say the defendant’s were making on the day in question,” Mr Mitchell said.

“Those with the responsibility of protecting our ports, and harbours must be held accountable for their actions. The truth is contagious, and there can be no innoculation against it.

When the facts in totality come to light, what we hope is that justice for Christopher will be meted”.

A case management hearing is expected to take place today before Justice Ian Winder on the matter.

CHRISTOPHER TURNQUEST

PAGE 6, Friday, July 20, 2018

THE TRIBUNE

‘Eradicating shanty towns will be a painful process’

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Deputy Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net WHILE insisting shanty towns have been allowed to exist for too long, Anglican Archdeacon James Palacious said the process toward full eradication of these illegal communities will be a “painful” one.

Speaking to reporters yesterday, he conceded many of those who presently live in shanty towns will not be financially able to afford normal rental fees, adding the church will have to step in to assist where needed and would appeal to Bahamians to assist.

Asked if the government should also provide financial assistance outside of compiling lists of available rental properties, Archdeacon Palacious said it would be a bad political move for the government to do so.

He said the government is also most likely cash strapped with no room for this kind of undertaking.

The archdeacon, who is acting Christian Council president, stressed his remarks reflected his personal views.

“It is my opinion that shanty towns have been permitted to exist for decades and decisive action is necessary to rectify this situation,” he said.

“The government has consulted extensively with the Bahamas Christian Council, the Haitian pastors, the wider Haitian community and other stakeholders.

I commend the government for this widespread

OFFICIAL government shanty town notices being handed out and stapled to homes. consultation, whereby the various occupants have been duly notified about the pending action to demolish the shanty towns. The building code and other laws of the land must be upheld by one and all.

“It is indeed however a painful experience for those communities, seeing their place of residence being bulldozed. After all, however we look at these structures (they) are the homes that many of them occupied in many cases for all of their lives. They have invested heavily in the

buildings and in the communities themselves. It is heart wrenching to say the least for many of us who are not a part of those communities so we can only imagine what it must be for the people who live there.

“The dislocation is tremendous and traumatic as the displaced try to find affordable housing. This is not easy.”

He continued: “Let’s face it, who wants to rent a house or apartment to people fresh out of a shanty town? Bahamians with reasonably paying jobs could

hardly find first and last month’s rent. Do we really expect ex-shanty town residents to have the money to do so?

“In the face of all of this all Bahamians are urged, as they are able, to help these residents to readjust to the financial and social realities of a new life and new location and in a new community. They are after all our brothers and sisters and we need to come to their aid in whatever way we can.”

He said the Christian Council does not have a

Photo: Terrel W Carey/Tribune Staff separate initiative in place to assist but the group plans to support Haitian pastors where needed.

“I’m sure when cases come up churches will be called upon and they ought to help them as resources permit. After all they are our brothers and sisters.

“We will be working with them in very short order.

That hasn’t been formally established but that would definitely be the route we would choose to take,” he also said.

“Similar to what you

might do or say in a natural disaster. We have to have a proper coordination of the effort so that you get the best bang for the buck and the money goes in areas where it is most needed.”

The government has given shanty town residents in New Providence who do not have occupancy certificates for their structures to relocate by August 10.

The Minnis administration plans to bulldoze the illegal structures built on Crown land, which was meant for farming.

PALACIOUS: SIR ROLAND HONOUR IS MISTAKE from page one

honoured a National Hero outside of Sir Lynden Pindling and Sir Milo Butler, it should have been former Governor General Arthur Dion Hanna. He stressed these were his personal views, not necessarily those of the Christian Council.

Mr Hanna received the honour of the Order of the Nation alongside 11 other people.

Nonetheless, the controversy that has erupted over the conferring of the honour to the former premier signals it is time for the country to have a discussion about race, Archdeacon Palacious said.

“It’s extremely unfortunate that the first time we are having a shot at these Bahamian awards, it is shrouded in such controversy,” he added. “ “I’m extremely sad. I wish we could have gotten it a little more right and, of course, this is an area where there is a lot of politicisation and polarisation.” “(Sir Roland’s) was obviously a regime that did not consider properly the rights, goals and aspirations of the masses of the Bahamians.

“And notwithstanding the many good things that Sir Roland would have done, I believe that he should not have been included and quite frankly I don’t see where Sir Cecil would have been included in this either.

“If anybody else was to be included in this, if you had to make it more than than Sir Lynden, then it probably ought to be A D Hanna in terms of somebody who fought specific policies (and) worked hard through the ‘Bahamianisation’ process. And, of course, Sir Milo, we all know his contribution.”

While many have been incensed by the decision to name Sir Roland a national hero, Archdeacon Palacious said Bahamians may have already forgiven the former United Bahamian Party leader for what some have termed the racist positions of his regime.

He said: “With respect to Sir Roland, I want this to be emphasised: in 2007 the

country voted for the son of Sir Roland to be deputy prime minister, deputy leader of the party and consequently deputy prime minister.

“Please include that because that tells us who we are as a people. At that point the Bahamian people determined that they would move beyond what had happened in the past. Not that it is not a fact, you can’t rewrite history, but in terms of forgiveness and permitting a Symonette to serve in the second highest position... the Bahamian people voted overwhelmingly for that to happen. It has happened and Brent Symonette served very well then and he’s serving very well now.

“So while his father presided over a regime that did not work for the liberation of the masses, Bahamians generally, I would like to think, have moved beyond that but the realities of the past are still the realities.”

Asked if he thought the process should be revisited after it was revealed Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis made the decision to award Sir Roland as the National Honours Advisory Committee did not receive an application for the former premier, Archdeacon Palacious said: “Yes I think it should and this is a good reason for it to be.”

His arguments in this regard fall in line with Section 9(5) of the National Honours Act 2016.

It states: “In determining the eligibility of a person… the Advisory Committee shall have regard to whether that person has made a seminal contribution to The Bahamas and which contribution has altered the course of the history of The Bahamas in a positive way; has given service to The Bahamas which has been exemplified by visionary and pioneering leadership, extraordinary achievement and the attainment of the highest excellence which has redounded to the honour of The Bahamas and which service and attainment have been acknowledged as a source of inspiration by a significant portion of the nation; has through that person’s

heroic exploits and sacrifice having gone beyond their personal and historic limitations, contributed to the improvement of the economic, spiritual and social conditions of the nation as a whole.”

Further, he said comments made by Dr Minnis during the most recent Majority Rule holiday further gave weight to the argument that Sir Roland should not have been considered.

At the time, Dr Minnis said: “In the middle of the 20th century, the House of Assembly was firmly under control of an entrenched oligarchy who maintained their stranglehold through unjust electoral laws and the brutal exercise of economic power. It was then that a new generation of political leaders rose up to challenge the old guard and to bring pressure on the colonial power.”

The first recipients of The Bahamas’ National Honours were announced on Independence Day. Sir Roland received the top honour with Sir Lynden, Sir Milo, former governor general, and Sir Cecil Wallace-Whitfield, former leader of the Free National Movement.

Sir Roland was elected to Parliament in 1925 before there was party government in The Bahamas. The PLP was founded in 1953, followed by the UBP in 1958.

Sir Roland headed the UBP and became The Bahamas’ first premier in 1964 after internal self-government was introduced. He gave up the leadership of the UBP in 1970 because of ill health, but continued to represent the Shirlea constituency in the House of Assembly eventually as a member of the FNM. He was one of the “Bay Street Boys,” a wealthy group of merchants that opened up The Bahamas to tourism, investment and casinos. When he died in 1980 he had been the longest serving member of Parliament, having served for 52 years. His record of service has not been broken.

Sir Lynden and the PLP formed the next government of The Bahamas in 1967.

THE TRIBUNE

Friday, July 20, 2018, PAGE 7

THE DOWNTOWN Straw Market.

Photo: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff

Straw Market vendors want out of Bannister portfolio

By MORGAN ADDERLEY Tribune Staff Reporter madderley@tribunemedia.net THE Straw Business Persons Society yesterday called for the Nassau Straw Market to be removed from the portfolio of Works Minister Desmond Bannister.

During a press conference, SBPS President Rev Esther Thompson and Vice President Rebecca Small also issued a challenge to Mr Bannister in the wake of the minister’s comments that Straw Market vendors owe thousands of dollars in rent.

They also expressed their belief that Mr Bannister has a “personal beef” with the vendors.

“The first thing we want to do is request that the prime minister remove the Straw Market from this current minister’s portfolio,” Rev Thompson said.

“And our reason is… straw vendors feel like this present minister has a personal beef against the vendors.”

On Sunday, Mr Bannister told The Tribune that there are vendors who have not paid rent for “three, four years.” He added that such a backlog makes it difficult for the Straw Market Authority (SMA) to find a way for the Straw Market to exist.

However, the SBPS board members, supported

by Englerston MP Glenys Hanna Martin, said since this administration took office, it has “demanded” that rent arrears be $200 or less.

Following Mr Bannister’s comments, Ms Small said earlier this week, SBPS conducted a survey of the 300 vendors currently working in the Straw Market. Ms Small said their findings reveal that 85 percent of vendors have debts that are less than $200.

She added that 25 percent of vendors have a zero balance.

With these results, SBPS is challenging the works minister to produce a public report listing the current

vendors who owe more than $200 and less than this figure.

In a statement, Rev Thompson said that vendors “have not received an annual audited report from the inception of the newly built market”.

“We want the minister to (provide) an accurate total of revenue collected from the straw vendors from the period July 1, 2017, to the present,” she said.

“The minister is on record saying that the market can’t function and the question is why,” she asked. “We believe it may be because of a lack of accountability and poor management by his team.”

The SBPS board members also hit out at the SMA, decrying the “hostile and vindictive approach” they say the body uses with vendors.

According to SBPS, when vendors attempt to make payments concerning their rent arrears, the SMA rejects all figures that are below the full amount.

“In several cases vendors brought half or three quarters of what they owed and still (were) rejected,” Rev Thompson said.

Despite it being the administrative procedure to open a vendor’s stall on the same day the vendor has brought their rent balance to zero, the SBPS members said the SMA “(breaks) the rules on a regular basis” and makes the vendors wait until the next business day to resume operations.

These actions, SBPS said, contribute to the financial struggles of the Straw Market.

As a result of these experiences, the organisation is calling for the prime minister and deputy prime minister to intervene.

Mrs Hanna Martin described the plight of the vendors as “heartbreaking”.

“It’s absolutely heartbreaking what’s happening in the Straw Market,” she said.

She also criticised Mr

Bannister for invoking a “political message” by suggesting that these arrears of the straw vendors were allowed to accumulate between 2012 and 2017.

“And so obviously you’re sending a political message when you do that,” she said.

“And so we have to put a spotlight on that, because it has nothing to do with that.

Secondly, the level of rents (is) being highlighted.”

According to SBPS, the vendors pay $35 per week in rent, which totals to $39.20 with the recent value added tax increase.

“They talk about the small rents these people are paying,” Ms Hanna Martin continued. “Well, they’re small business people. It might seem small to someone else, but for them, it’s creating challenges in the economic environment.”

The Englerston MP described the approach taken by Mr Bannister as “bullying,” highlighting that this is an historical, generational industry which is led primarily by women.

She also was critical of the “deplorable” conditions of the Straw Market, referring to the lack of proper lighting and ventilation.

“And so I have a major concern about the approach that’s being taken…

We just came out of the budget debate. The law was changed to provide tax breaks to foreign oil companies in Grand Bahama.

That’s your right.

“But how could you on the one hand have such a facilitative attitude to foreign, big, big billion dollar investors, but your historic industry of women, self-made entrepreneurs, generational, part of the history of our country, and you would take such a brutish approach to the vendors?

“That inconsistency is disturbing to me, very disturbing to me.”

Mrs Hanna Martin also called for Mr Bannister to “sit with the leadership” of SBPS to collaborate on finding resolutions for these issues.

STUDENT DEBTORS STILL WON’T PAY UP from page one

call” action plan has yielded “its fair share”.

“Basically, we are still doing all we can to get what we can from those that have responded and showed their willingness to pay something back,” she told The Tribune.

“As it stands, I can’t put a figure to it at this time, but we have pushed significantly into the amount of persons owing and not communicating with us.”

According to Mrs Emmanuel, the student loan repayment incentive programme, which was established in February 2016, effectively attracted borrowers “willing to do the right thing”.

In June, Mrs Emmanuel said 498 borrowers paid off their loans through the plan.

However, yesterday she said the ELA now needs to determine a way to “chase down all the others”.

“We have to do extensive analysis, perhaps we are looking to have that done by the end of the month into the start of August to find out how much is still owed by that other group.

“There is the legal avenue that you’ve heard about. That is certainly a great option; but we want to do what we have to do in a legally right way,” she added.

“What I am saying is, we want a legal approach that encourages everyone and

works for both sides. We don’t want to put anyone in a place where their life is limited.

“We’ve contacted some persons who came in and gave us an understanding of where they are at.

So we know that there are some borrowers out there that have the thought that if the government comes knocking, we are going to want all they have. That’s not the case, you know. We are sending out phone calls, we are sending out letters to the effect that we want them to come in and speak with us.

“We are very optimistic that once they hear that message, more will be open to voluntarily coming in and working with us. The focus is getting the ELA back in a position where it can do what it was designed to do, afford young Bahamians a chance at tertiary level education.

“We believe that if you get it back up and running the right way, we can get more Bahamians opportunities. That can only happen if we get back some of what was put in.”

To date, some 3,938 loans worth $42.56 million have been awarded to borrowers in New Providence.

Another 669 loans worth $7.41m have been awarded in Grand Bahama, she said, while 126 loans worth $1.39m have been awarded in the Family Islands.

As of April, the authority’s portion of the loan scheme’s portfolio stood at

approximately $84,860,978, which represents 2,182 loans with default, a rate of 90 percent, and a delinquency rate of 275 days that is equivalent to $79,120,750, according to data provided by the ELA. Also, as of the same date more than $48,762,496 or 992 loans which represents the accumulation of interest and principal originally were paid off by the government of The Bahamas to approved lenders in accordance with article 21(3) of the repealed Education Guarantee Fund Act 2001.

The student loan programme was established in 2000 to assist students pursuing tertiary education, either locally or abroad.

However, it was suspended in August 2009 due to its high delinquency rate.

Last year, Education Minister Jeffrey Lloyd said his ministry had commenced the dissemination of written requests to the more than 4,600 former loan recipients, requesting some form of repayment.

Similar letters were issued during the former Christie administration.

In early 2016, then Education Minister Jerome Fitzgerald said the ELA was owed $155m in outstanding loan payments for its student loan scheme.

At the time, the Progressive Liberal Party cabinet minister urged delinquent borrowers to arrange repayment methods or face court action.

Mr Fitzgerald said at the

time that the ministry, along with ELA officials, had established a student loan repayment incentive programme to help secure the outstanding funds.

The programme involved the establishment of a 12-month period of “incentives and waivers” from March 1, 2016 to assist and encourage delinquent

borrowers to repay their loans. That was to be an interest-free period, during which no interest would be applied to loans, Mr Fitzgerald said.

PAGE 8, Friday, July 20, 2018

THE TRIBUNE

No slunkin’, get ready for storm season T

HIS past Wednesday I was on live radio remote, on KISS96FM at NEMA headquarters, kicking off the “Ready for Hurricane Season with Radiohouse” promotion.

While chatting with my broadcast colleagues from JoyFM, Y98 and 100Jamz, we all shared the same opinion that it made great sense to be proactive this hurricane season, as much as we have been reactive, post storms in the past.

Instead of embracing our affection for “slunkin” as a nation, this hurricane season we are challenging Bahamians far and wide, to be prepared ahead of time – checklist complete, home secured, only thing left to do, would be to ride out the storm and try to keep cool.

IT’S NOT TO LATE I expect you are reading this column with all the comforts you are used to.

If you are reading this without interruptions in power (not the usual BPL load shedding madness this time of year) phone, water, etc, and it means a hurricane has not graced us with their presence.

That being the case, (REMINDER) you still have time to prepare for the rapidly moving, major hurricane season.

My late mother often said, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”

In times like this, that is the perfect advice.

Get your supplies ready early.

Water, food, flashlights, portable radios, candles and batteries are just a few of the items you should have on your check list.

(REMINDER) Do not run your generators indoors or it will be your last hurricane. If the hurricane doesn’t get you, carbon monoxide fumes will.

Stay indoors at all times.

Running around in the many “mini lakes” that will spring up all over New Providence is suicidal.

(REMINDER) Lightning is usually a travelling companion of hurricanes and they are a gruesome twosome and should be avoided at all times.

If you don’t have proper Met Office or Press credentials, you need not be outside.

In other words, keep your behind indoors… if not for your own safety, for the safety of those who would have to rescue you from your idiocy — in the eye of the storm.

(REMINDER) Finally, putting your storm shutters up or duct taping your windows half an hour before the storm hits is comical.

You may as well have a laugh, because your lack of preparation coupled with the wrath of any hurricane will make you cry later.

NO TIME FOR ‘BAHAMIAN TIME’ I think we Bahamians have become accustomed to doing things on “Bahamian Time” for far too long.

Running late for an appointment at eight?

That’s okay; most will show up at nine and laugh it off as ‘Bahamian Time.’

Bahamian Time is a crutch that falsely convinces us we have ‘too much’ time to prepare; which leads to socialisation (hurricane planning parties), which leads to procrastination, which leads to major repairs after the storm.

(REMINDER) Repairs which — with the proper preparation — could have been avoided.

REAL TIME Just imagine if the timeframe for hurricanes was similar to that of tornadoes!

Let me explain.

I was performing at a show in Alabama when the phone rang around seven pm.

It was the front desk

NAUGHTY at the 100 Jamz live remote, Be Hurricane Ready, held with Radio House at NEMA. Below right, one of the 285 hurricane emergency kits donated by Fidelity Bank.

Photos: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff calling to warn me about a tornado watch. I enquired as to how long I had to prepare, to which the front desk clerk replied “None, sir, the tornado is here!”

All I had time to do was to grab my travel documents, my wallet and my rosary and barricade myself in the bathroom.

I stayed in there for two days straight duct taped to the toilet.

I thought the tornado was still passing, lingering and sauntering its way out of town... a whole lot slower to exit than it was to arrive.

Surprisingly, that was not the case, and my life preserving time in the tub became a “road story” for the other three comedians I was touring with.

I guess “Mother Nature” got the best of me on that one.

Don’t let her get the best of you this hurricane season.

Get out there and protect your family, pets, property and most of all yourself.

Now, I must run. I have to get back to my hurricane preparation.

Specifically, I have to figure out how to explain to my wife why there are more cans of libations than canned food.

I better come up with a good one; I don’t know who’s going to ‘howl’ and ‘blow’ worse, this hurricane season, her or the storm?

(REMINDER) And yes, “Jack Daniels” and your beer of choice are must have items on any hurricane list.

READERS RESPOND TO FALLING SALES AFTER VAT INCREASE AFTER AML Foods revealed sales have fallen 10 per cent since the VAT rate hike, readers gave their reactions on tribune242. com.

OMG said: “Don’t mind paying the 12% as the country is in dire financial straights but what I really object to is paying VAT on tax. Example, with air freight imports you pay Customs handling – $10, Brokerage fee, Import duty and freight. Then you pay 12% on the total-double taxation. Secondly, if an individual is responsible for a substantial financial misdeed they are usually held accountable but we, the public, are paying all these extra taxes (and there are many more than VAT) to rectify the waste, corruption, and airy-fairy spending on lousy expensive, often never to be completed, projects. Name the persons who put their names to sanctioning these projects, etc, and make them accountable.”

That prompted DDK to ask: “Wonder what the IMF, IADB, EU et al think of the double taxation system in this country? Probably could care less!”

And this response from Hbgal: “I too object to this double taxation! You forgot to mention how the VAT is added at every point in the transaction when handled by another vendor. So, at the end, you pay on the higher value plus the seller’s

markup. We cannot afford to live like this!“ Joeblow had this to say: “This was a predictable consequence! Wait until tourist arrivals and spending starts to decrease because people are going to have to pay 15% gratuity and 12% VAT! Who wants to pay 27% for anything WITH mediocre service to boot!”

Millennial242 asked: “Who’s in charge of the numbers at AML? For a publicly listed company, this article is reckless. It seems like a throw of blame.

There are too many mitigating factors in play for AML to make this assessment so soon after VAT implementation has taken place. They may very well see a sales decline because of VAT, but it is too soon to validate that.”

Well_mudda_take_sic said: “(AML Foods’ chief executive Gavin) Watchorn can pray all he likes for the situation to be normalised down the road, but that will not be happening.

As the proverbial saying goes, ‘blood can’t be had from a stone’, and the vast majority of Bahamians are tapped out. Bahamians are having to trim their weekly

grocery costs and cut back on many other regular expenses previously considered necessary. And this is happening all because of the 60% increase in VAT on everything from groceries, gasoline, electricity (if BPL bill above $200, which is the case for many Bahamians), car insurance, doctors bills, and on and on and on.”

And there was this from John: “The key point here is AML saw a FIFTY PERCENT increase in sales from continuing operations in the weeks prior to the VAT increase. So this is in line with the government’s claim that there was some growth in the economy in recent months. Mostly due to Bah Mar opening and creating new jobs and the tourist sector as a whole showing strong numbers.

And so a 10% decline in spending after the increase in VAT should be expected because a portion of consumers’ disposable income must now go towards the VAT increase. And based on Watchorn’s touting of a 50% growth in sales, this may have been sufficient to cover the government’s shortfall in revenue had they continued to stimulate growth rather than creating doubt, reductions in disposable income by increased taxes and doubt to investors.”

• Don’t miss your chance to join the debate on tribune242.com.

THE TRIBUNE

Friday, July 20, 2018, PAGE 9

Basil Sands dies, aged 88

By RICARDO WELLS Tribune Staff Reporter rwells@tribunemedia.net BASIL Sands Sr, the father of Health Minister Dr Duane Sands and Baha Mar Senior Vice President Robert “Sandy” Sands, died yesterday at the age of 88.

The elder Sands, a celebrated accountant in his own right, was also the father of noted and respected veterinarian Dr Basil Sands Jr. In a post to Facebook yesterday, the health minister acknowledged the death of his father, referring to him as an example “of what it means to be a man”.

“My dad died today,” Dr Sands wrote. “He was 88.

As I reminisce on our loss, it is hard not to treasure years of examples of what it means to be a man.

“He was at home with his wife of 66 years – having left a legacy of children, grands and great-grandchildren who had embraced his ethos of love for God, country and family – and who have all attempted to do their part to build our great country. We are a very close-knit family because of my parents.

“I live my life in large part because of the values instilled by my parents and while saddened today….

I know that I am better because of his example.

BASIL Sands with his son Robert “Sandy” Sands and, above right, shaking hands with his son, Dr Duane Sands, as Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis watches on.

“RIP Daddy,” Dr Sands concluded.

Meanwhile, in a statement of support, Official Opposition Leader Philip “Brave” Davis praised the life and legacy of Mr Sands, who he referred to as a “very good friend.”

Mr Davis wrote: “This is truly a sign that an era has come to an end. Basil Sands was a brilliant man. He was a pioneer in his field as an accountant. In some sense, we did not know the word accountant and what it was until he came home from

school.

“He founded his own practice and was successful beyond measure.

“Many Bahamians followed in the path where he trod. He was the founding president of the Bahamas Institute

of Chartered Accountants. In politics, he was a supporter of the PLP. He never wavered in that support. He did not hide it. Whether in or out of government, the PLP received his commitment to help the progressive cause. This

was true whether it was Sir Lynden Pindling at the helm, or Perry G Christie and right up to this day with me as leader.

“In civic life, he was a leader of the Prince Hall Masons. He rose to the ranks of sovereign grand commander of the Prince Hall Masonic Order worldwide. He served in positions in the Prince Hall Masonic Order at the very highest levels both at home and abroad. In that endeavour, many young Bahamians followed in his path in the fraternal order.

“He cut a swath of leadership which is to be envied,” the Cat Island, Rum Cay and San Salvador MP said.

Mr Davis, also acknowledged Sands’ commitment to the Anglican Church and his appointment to the Order of Sir Michael and St George in 2006 by Queen Elizabeth II. “I am sorry that he has passed. On my behalf of my wife Anne and the entire Progressive Liberal Party, I extend (condolences) to his family, his wife Roberta, his children Robert, Diane, Basil Jr, Rene and Duane,” Mr Davis wrote. “May he rest in peace.”

In 2016, Sands became the first nonAmerican to hold the prestigious Freemasonry high office of sovereign grand commander.

COURT REJECTS GUNMAN’S MURDER APPEAL

By NICO SCAVELLA Tribune Staff Reporter nscavella@tribunemedia.net

THE Court of Appeal has dismissed a convict’s attempts at challenging a Supreme Court jury imposed conviction for murdering a man during a failed attempt to rob him at gunpoint of his car six years ago.

Appellate President Sir Hartman Longley and fellow Justices Jon Isaacs and Sir Michael Barnett, dismissed Errol Knowles’ appeal of his conviction for murdering Heuton Lloyd Jr after trying to rob him of his Honda Accord.

Knowles had tried to appeal his conviction on the basis the trial judge had put undue pressure on the jury to return a unanimous guilty verdict against him on the murder charge.

However, the appellate judges found the trial judge’s actions were “no more than an attempt to act responsibly given the situation that had arisen as a result of a clear misunderstanding of the instructions given to the jury”.

And in any event, the appellate judges said Knowles’ application to appeal his conviction was out of time, having been filed over a year late.

Knowles’ victim was seated in his red Honda Accord around 2am on Key West Street when Knowles and another individual, Rashad McPhee, tried to rob him at gunpoint.

Lloyd got out of the car, but reached for his waist, causing Knowles to shoot him. McPhee said Lloyd ran away, but Knowles ran after him, shooting him five more times in the process.

McPhee said a few days after the murder Knowles warned he would kill him if he told anyone about the incident.

On February 15, 2016, following a trial before Justice Indra Charles, Knowles was convicted of murder, armed robbery and attempted armed robbery.

On October 21, 2016, he was sentenced to 12 years imprisonment for armed

robbery and ten years for attempted armed robbery, with both sentences to run concurrently.

The sentences were reduced to give credit for the time Knowles had previously spent on remand, resulting in him having to serve eight years and three months from the date of sentencing.

Concerning the murder conviction, Knowles was sentenced “to be detained during the Court’s pleasure with his detention being reviewed after 20 years”.

McPhee, meanwhile was convicted, 11-1, of murder.

They also convicted him by the same count of the attempted armed robbery.

Knowles subsequently appealed Justice Charles’ decision, but did so over a year later. The reason he gave for the delay was that he was confused about the procedure and time frame to appeal.

However, the appellate judges said his explanation was “unacceptable”, and found that it could not account for the “substantial” and “inordinate” delay in making the application.

Concerning his intended appeal, Knowles contended that a “material irregularity” occurred during the trial when Justice Charles put “pressure” on the jury to return a unanimous guilty verdict on the charge of murder.

According to the ruling, during her summation, Justice Charles told the jury that in order to convict Knowles of murder they had to return a unanimous verdict, but to acquit him of the charge a majority verdict would suffice.

When the jury returned, and after being asked by the clerk whether they had reached a verdict, they said the found Knowles guilty of murder by a count of 11-1. Incidentally, the jury returned a verdict by the same tally against Knowles’ co-accused on the same charge.

Realising that the jury had not complied with her instructions, and may have been mistaken, Justice

Charles explained to the jurors that such a verdict was not acceptable on the murder charge and asked them if they wanted more time to deliberate. Justice Charles also told them they could reach any verdict, guilty or not guilty.

The foreman agreed even though she initially indicated that the jury understood the original instructions from the judge.

The jury left to deliberate further and when they returned, delivered a unanimous guilty verdict on Knowles’ murder charge.

Knowles’ attorney Ryzsard Humes thus submitted that Justice Charles’ reminding the jury of her earlier instruction and telling them to further deliberate on the matter had the effect of reprimanding them.

However, the appellate judges disagreed, stating that given the circumstances, it was in “everyone’s interest and certainly in the interest of justice” that the jury be told to give “further consideration to the issue”.

Conversely, the appellate judges said the question was whether Justice Charles acted properly in doing so or did she put undue pressure on the jurors to return a particular verdict.

The appellate judges said in similar situations, the judge may include a “Watson direction” to remove any “hint of pressure”. However, the judges said such a direction was not necessary at that stage of the trial as there was no impasse. Rather, the appellate judges said the jurors mistakenly thought they had reached proper guilty verdicts.

The appellate judges further noted that while Justice Charles did not give a full Watson direction to the jurors, in telling them that they could reach any verdict and that it in effect was a matter for them, she was “making clear” the verdict was a matter for the jury and no pressure was being put on them to reach a particular verdict.

“This time the jury clearly got it right and indicated that they understood their instructions,” the appellate judges said. “They retired and deliberated for at least another hour before returning with the unanimous verdict of guilty of murder in respect of the intended appellant.

“Significantly, however, the jury remained deadlocked, 11-1, on the murder charge against the intended appellant’s co-accused. This demonstrated that they understood the instructions and notwithstanding the extra time for deliberation they remained deadlocked on the same count as

against the co-accused.

“Was there a material irregularity? We did not think so.

The appellate judges added: “…In the circumstances, the intended appellant’s conviction and sentence (as there was no appeal against sentence) were affirmed”.

Operations Manager Are you a people person? Join a team where people come first.

About Us – A leading regional player in the retail insurance sector, Colonial Group International, with over 300 employees and offices in Bermuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands and the Turks & Caicos Islands, offers a complete range of premier financial and insurance services to our individual and corporate clients. We know that our products make a real difference to our clients and their families.

The Role - Based in Nassau and reporting to the Director of Operations, this position will ensure effective customer service delivery, administration and eligibility and claims processing to support business retention. Other duties will include, but not be limited to, policy interpretation, process and procedure reviews and enhancements, undertaking structured audits and working with independent service providers as may be required.

The Person – You will have a minimum of 15 years’ demonstrable experience in health insurance operations with a minimum of 10 years’ experience at the Supervisory/Management level with responsibilities for functional areas within the health insurance industry, including the development and implementation of policies, procedures and audits. Experience working within the US healthcare and/or US medical health insurance system, including all aspects of customer service, clinical, claims and eligibility administration as well as working with US PPO provider network organizations and negotiating contracts with independent service providers is required. A thorough understanding of group employee health benefit plans, including medical, dental, life, and disability as well as an in-depth understanding of policy contracts and contractual wording is essential along with superior communication and organization skills as well as a service oriented approach.

The Benefits – We offer an attractive salary and benefits.

To Apply – Please send your resume/cv to our Vice-President, Human Resources at bs_hr@atlantichouse.com.bs . Closing date for applications is July 23, 2018.

THREE ARRESTED AFTER MORNING RAID POLICE arrested three suspects yesterday after an early morning armed robbery.

According to reports from police, shortly after 2am three armed men entered the property of the Learning Resources Unit on Mackey Street, held the security officer and another

man at bay and robbed the officer of a cell phone and a set of keys, before tying him up.

Officers of the operational unit “Steady the Land” and Mobile Division officers, responded and after a short chase, captured the three suspects and recovered a 9

millimetre pistol, 12 rounds of ammunition and the stolen property.

The security officer was not injured; however, the second man, who was gun butted, was transported to hospital and is listed in stable condition.

Investigations are ongoing.

ATLANTIC MEDICAL INSURANCE LIMITED Atlantic House, 2nd Terrace & Collins Avenue, P.O. Box SS-5915, Nassau, Bahamas tel. 326 8191 www.cgigroup.com A Member of Colonial Group International Insurance, Health, Pensions, Life Atlantic Medical Insurance is rated A- (Excellent) by AM Best

PAGE 10, Friday, July 20, 2018

THE TRIBUNE

GOOD NIGHT TO GOOD MORNING VIETNAM HERO NORFOLK, Virginia (AP) — Adrian Cronauer, the man whose military radio antics inspired a character played

by Robin Williams in the film “Good Morning, Vietnam”, has died. He was 79.

Mary Muse, the wife of his stepson Michael Muse, said Thursday that Cronauer died Wednesday from an age-related illness.

He had lived in Troutville, Virginia, and died at a local nursing home, she said.

During his service as a US Air Force sergeant in Vietnam in 1965 and 1966, Cronauer opened his Armed Forces Radio show with the phrase, “Goooooood morning, Vietnam!”

Williams made the refrain famous in the 1987 film, loosely based on Cronauer’s time in Saigon.

“We were the only game in town, and you had to play by our rules,” Cronauer told The Associated Press in 1987. “But I wanted to serve the listeners.”

The military wanted conservative programming.

American youths, however, were “not into drab, sterile announcements” with middle-of-the-road music, Cronauer said. Cronauer said he loved the movie but much of it was Hollywood makebelieve. Robin Williams’ portrayal as a fast-talking, nonconformist disc jockey sometimes gave people the wrong impression of the man who inspired the film.

‘DR BUMBUM’ ARRESTED AFTER PATIENT DEATH RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Police arrested celebrity plastic surgeon Denis Cesar Barros Furtado yesterday, five days after he went on the run following the death of a patient he gave injections to enlarge her buttocks.

Known as “Dr Bumbum”, Furtado was arrested at an office complex in Rio de Janeiro’s Barra de Tijuca neighborhood. Police also arrested his mother, Maria de Fatima Barros, who worked with him.

Police said Furtado performed the buttock enhancement procedure on bank manager Lilian Calixto at his Rio home Saturday. Calixto fell ill during the procedure and Furtado rushed her to a nearby hospital, where she died hours later.

IN this September 20, 2017, file photo, electricity poles and lines lie toppled on the road after Hurricane Maria hit the eastern region of the island, in Humacao, Puerto Rico.

Photo: Carlos Giusti/AP

Turmoil as Puerto Rico rebuilds its power grid SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico Associated Press

TEN months after Hurricane Maria destroyed Puerto Rico’s electric grid, the local agency responsible for rebuilding it is in chaos and more than $1bn in federal funds meant to strengthen the rickety system has gone unspent, according to contractors and US officials who are anxious to make progress before the next hurricane.

The Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority has seen two chief executive officers and four board members resign in less than a week in a messy fight over how much the bankrupt agency should pay its CEO. The agency’s fourth CEO since the hurricane lasted less than 24 hours on the job last week before resigning amid public outrage over his $750,000 salary.

Gov Ricardo Rossello on Wednesday named the former head of Puerto Rico’s water and sewer agency as the fifth head of the electric company

since Maria, at a salary of $250,000 a year. Jose Ortiz starts work Monday.

“In spite of missteps in the past, everybody will see that we have the right person at the right time,” Rossello said.

The turmoil has fueled delays in launching $1.4bn worth of work that includes replacing creaky wooden power poles vulnerable to collapse in the next storm, the chief federal official in charge of rebuilding Puerto Rico told The Associated Press.

“There is no permanent work that’s been done,” said Mike Byrne, the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s assistant administrator for field operations. “What I’m worried about is the next level, the permanent work, the going in and building the grid the way I’ve been tasked to do

by Congress.”

From shut-down medical equipment to the spread of waterborne diseases, the cascading effects of power grid failure likely led to hundreds of deaths in the

aftermath of the Category 4 hurricane, although the exact number remains a subject of debate and ongoing investigation.

“The one reason why so many people died in the aftermath of the hurricane was the lack of energy,” said opposition Sen Eduardo Bhatia. “And the lack of energy comes from how fragile the system was because of years of neglect.”

Several hundred Puerto Ricans remained without power yesterday in the longest-running blackout in US history. The entire island remains vulnerable because much of the massive damage from the storm was resolved with temporary fixes likely to fail in the next hurricane.

These include thousands of weakened and damaged poles and power lines that were reused in the absence of new supplies. In some cases, lines were bolted to trees.

The Puerto Rico power authority notified three large mainland US

companies in March that they had been selected to carry out $1.4bn worth of contracts that includes finishing emergency restoration work and beginning the long-term task of overhauling the power grid. Nearly four months later, the agency has not issued the final orders required to send the linemen into the field to do the permanent work, according to federal officials and some contractors.

The power authority has not explained why, and a spokesman did not return repeated AP calls for comment.

As with virtually all posthurricane disaster relief in Puerto Rico, the work is contracted and paid for by bankrupt local agencies using money disbursed by FEMA from billions appropriated by Congress.

The board created by Congress to oversee Puerto Rico’s finances and bankruptcy-like proceedings reviews the government’s major contracts. In May, it found problems with the contracts of two of the

power companies chosen to do the first stages of permanent work. These include vague descriptions of the scope of the project and a lack of detailed evaluation of costs.

Ortiz, the power authority’s new head, indicated potential problems with at least one of the contractors, Cobra, a subsidiary of Oklahoma-based Mammoth Energy. Cobra has been awarded more than $1.8bn in federal money, at rates of about $4,000 per worker per day in many cases. Ortiz said the cost of the contractors would be getting a second look.

The problems at the power authority are prompting calls for urgent change to Puerto Rico’s decades-old system of putting its power generation and transmission under the control of a government agency run by the governor’s appointees rather than an independent, government-regulated corporation, as occurs in virtually all other parts of the United States.

TRUMP GOVERNMENT ENDS SPECIES PROTECTION RULES DENVER Associated Press THE Trump administration yesterday proposed ending automatic protections for threatened animals and plants and limiting habitat safeguards meant to shield recovering species from harm.

Administration officials said the new rules would advance conservation by simplifying and improving how the landmark Endangered Species Act is used.

“These rules will be very protective,” said US Interior Department Deputy Secretary David Bernhardt, adding that the changes would reduce the “conflict and uncertainty” associated with many protected species.

The proposals drew immediate condemnation from Democrats and some wildlife advocates.

Critics said the moves would speed extinctions in the name of furthering its anti-environment agenda. Species currently under consideration for protections are considered especially at risk, including the North American wolverine and the monarch butterfly, they said.

“It essentially turns every listing of a species into a negotiation,” said Noah Greenwald with the Center for Biological Diversity.

“They could decide that building in a species’ habitat or logging in trees where birds nest doesn’t constitute harm.”

A number of conflicts have arisen in the decades since the 1973 passage of the Endangered Species Act, ranging from disruptions to logging to protect spotted owls in the Pacific Northwest, to attacks on livestock that have accompanied the restoration of gray wolves in the Rocky Mountains and upper Midwest.

Some species including gray wolves and grizzly retained protection for years after meeting their original recovery goals, often due to court orders resulting from environmentalists’ lawsuits.

The proposed changes include potential limits on the designation of “critical habitat” for imperiled plants and animals; an end to a regulatory provision that gives threatened plants and animals the same protections as species at greater risk of extinction; and streamlining interagency consultations when federal government actions could jeopardise a species.

Collin O’Mara, president of the National Wildlife Federation, welcomed the potential for the changes to spur greater collaboration between landowners, government officials and conservationists — even as he cautioned against ending automatic protections for threatened species.

More than 700 animals and almost 1,000 plants in the US are shielded by the law. Hundreds more are under consideration for protections.

THE TRIBUNE

Friday, July 20, 2018, PAGE 11

Long Island, Abaco look to expand sponging industry MORE than a dozen spongers on Long Island expressed huge interest in moving forward with creating a local association and revitalising the industry during a meeting with project managers of a project to revitalise the sponging industry.

“It was encouraging to see so much support from the community in getting this industry restored on Long Island,” said project coordinator Claudine Green.

“Many of those who sponge or want to get into sponging also seemed very interested in establishing a local sponging association as a part of the larger project. This is very promising for the residual impact of the project.”

The project to revitalise the industry is sponsored by the InterAmerican Development Bank and the government, and managed by BAIC along with support from IICA (Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture), the Bahamas National Trust, the Department of Marine Resources and BCSA board members.

This is the second townhall meeting organisers have had outside of the project’s pilot island of Andros.

Project managers met with Abaco spongers and those interested in sponging earlier in the month. At both meetings organisers discussed current sponging activity on those islands, future plans, ways the project can assist them, and future opportunities for training.

Deral Wells Jr is a 29-year-old sponger from Gray’s, Long Island and left the meeting in his community enthused about the

BAIC Sr Deputy General Manager Debbie Strachan examines some processed sponges on Long Island on July 12. possibilities.

“I think the meeting opened most eyes with the classes and training that will be going on,” he said.

The $1.1m project seeks to increase income for spongers by providing them with a larger share of the revenue from this industry. A major component of the project is the formation of the Bahamas Commercial Spongers Association to centralise the processing of the sponge and help to link local spongers with

international markets directly.

Mr Wells, who sponges about five months out of the year, pointed out that the creation of the local and national sponge associations should help push the price for the product and make it a lucrative livelihood for many Bahamians.

“It’s a different avenue for Long Islanders and Bahamians to take instead of just waiting on someone to come in and dictate the

pace,” he said. “It’s our product we should be able to put a price on it. We don’t go into the shop and say ‘hey this can of corned beef is 70 cents’ we have to buy it for whatever it costs. It’s an easier way to make more money for us here.”

BAIC Sr Deputy General Manager Debbie Strachan has led the meetings on Long Island and Abaco and believes the industry is well on its way to rejuvenation and increased revenue for

the spongers.

“On both of these islands, along with Andros, it is encouraging to see the local support of spongers.” she said. “We have identified a recurring issue of spongers having available reputable buyers but a part of this project is to connect the local spongers with buyers who will pay top dollar not only for the unrefined sponge but also sponge that has valued added from processing, clipping and even packaging.”

According to InterAmerican Bank project documents, the project hopes to empower local spongers who “do not have access to highervalue markets because they are not organised and do not have the skills to process and market the sponges, and thus earn a low-income.”

Many spongers harvest the sponge and sell it at a low price not realising the full economic value of their work.

PAGE 12, Friday, July 20, 2018

THE TRIBUNE

‘The Bahamas’ own street philosopher’

WAYNE SMITH, son of Doris Smith, shows how a fire ripped through his elderly mother’s bedroom.

Photos: Denise Maycock

96-year-old ‘woken by crackling and smoke’

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net DORIS Smith, 96, was awakened by the sounds of “crackling and smoke” and her quick action helped to save not only herself but her caretaker from a fire at her residence in Pinedale, Eight Mile Rock.

The cause of the fire is unknown and fire officials are still investigating.

According to Ms Smith’s caretaker, workers had been by the house on Tuesday “fiddling” with the electrical wiring.

The fire started in Ms Smith’s bedroom during the early hours of Wednesday morning.

“I heard crackling and smelled smoke,” recalled Ms Smith. “I looked in the kitchen, but there was no light on in there.”

Ms Smith thought it might have been the fan, then she looked at the television.

“I picked up the remote and try to cut off the television, but the remote was not working,” she said.

That’s when Ms Smith called out to the caretaker and alerted her to a fire in her bedroom.

“I said… ‘Get up, the house on fire,’” she said.

Ms Smith was assisted out of the house by her caretaker and is now staying with her grandniece in Eight Mile Rock.

“The bedroom is completely destroyed; everything is burned,” Ms Smith said. “I had a brand-new bedroom set; the mattress, rug, and all my clothes – everything is gone.”

Shuffel Hepburn, a close relative of Ms Smith, said the family wants answers.

“The Fire Department said the fire started in her bedroom, and the Haitian lady who is taking care of her said they (some workers) came over there on Tuesday and did something with the wire.

“The caretaker said she told them they couldn’t leave the wire like that because it could cause a fire and they told her they would come back to fix.

We don’t know if they ever came back to fix it,” Mr Hepburn said.

“Right now, the house is in bad shape, and so an assessment would have to be done, and the question is who is going to pay to repair the damage?” he asked.

Ms Smith is one of the oldest residents in Eight Mile Rock and has lived at her house in Pinedale for the past eight decades.

DORIS SMITH, 96, in her living room earlier this week prior to the fire that damaged her home, below. She is pictured with her son, Wayne Smith.